


Drowning On Air

by unholyseraphs (oncharredwings)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Castiel as an object of science, M/M, One Shot, One sided relationship, mermaid!cas, pirate!dean, scientists researching mermaids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-20
Updated: 2014-03-20
Packaged: 2018-01-16 09:50:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1343104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oncharredwings/pseuds/unholyseraphs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mermaids are not supposed to save humans, but no one gave Castiel that memo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Drowning On Air

**Author's Note:**

> _Castiel does not look human, do not envision him as being very humanoid. He is a dark black and blue, and his body is more gray and white than flesh tone. He has human features but he is mostly "scary" looking. He has rows of sharp teeth, and his face is more alien than human. Enjoy!_

Castiel watched the human stagger down the dock, even if he had been told to stay away from the human’s port by Gabriel and Lucifer earlier; he hardly ever listened. He was not a very good mercreature. He was about to turn and leave, since the moon had risen and the hour was now very late, his brothers would come looking for him soon if he did not return. Castiel turned, ready to start going back to the open waters, but then a splash caught him off guard. He felt the motion in the water and Castiel turned back around to look; the human was no longer on the dock.

Castiel, like any other mercreature, _knew_ that humans were dangerous to his kind, and he should not have started swimming over towards the human but he was going to drown if Castiel did nothing. The young man was trapped in a net, and he was so drunk that he could not break himself free, so Castiel swam close to him, going near to where his foot was entrapped, biting through the net with his sharp teeth, and then he wrapped strong arms around the man and hauled him to the surface, even going so far as to hoist him up onto the dock again, ducking down out of fear once he was stable.

“Sunovabitch,” the man slurred, coughing up water and then lying still, breathing heavily.

Castiel bit his lip and then slowly peered up over the edge of the dock at the human, his eyes adjusting to the world above the water, his head tilting to the side slowly. The man had a pretty face, with full lips, and across his cheeks were splashes of darker marks; he had heard them called freckles once.

“Whoa-you’re a funny lookin’ thing, ain’tcha?” the man slurred quietly, reaching out to lightly touch Castiel on the face but Castiel ducked away, afraid. “Hey-hey it s’okay I won’t hurtcha-c’mere…”

Slowly, he peered over the edge of the dock again, placing his webbed fingers along the wood, his nails digging in so he could hold on for a longer period of time. The young man stared at him in shock, reaching out and touching him lightly along the cheek, trailing curious fingers to his lips and then down to where the gills were on his neck. Castiel wanted to say something but he knew if he opened his mouth to speak to Dean, the man would not understand his words.

“You’re soft,” came the man’s whisper, a small smile on his face. “Kinda rubbery…like a….dolphin or somethin’. You a dolphin?” Castiel shook his head, not able to resist the urge to say no. “You _understand_ me? Man…I really did drink too much tonight….thanks for savin’ me figment of my imagination. I appreciate the help and creativity.”

Castiel made a sad noise when the man pushed himself up to his knees and then staggered towards the main road again. That was when he remembered how late the hour was, so Castiel ducked back into the water to get a breath and then began to swim back to his nest. His brothers would be worried about him; he was halfway out of the port when he heard the man’s voice again, and Castiel paused, popping up above the water, realizing that the young man he had become enamored with was boarding a ship, and it was leaving!

Distressed, Castiel decided to follow the ship instead, swimming along the bottom, rubbing his scales up against the bottom in places that helped scratch itches that he could not reach bodily. He followed the ship out into open water all through the night, and only made another appearance in the morning when he heard the man’s voice once more. Clicking excitedly, he popped up and jumped a few times, trying to draw the man’s attention. Surely, the man would remember him, it had not been that long.

“What-“ The man spun around, staring open mouthed at Castiel who popped up again swimming in circles. “…..that’s…that’s a _mermaid_.”

Castiel clicked excitedly again, splashing around, until he realized the men on board were not as excited to see him as he was to see them. He could hear them making commands, and before he could react, the men had thrown a net down on him, and they were hauling him up towards the ship. Castiel screeched, trying to break himself free but the more he struggled, the more entangled he became and he could only screech and scream over and over in distress.

“It’s a merman,” someone whispered, sending shock and surprise throughout the crew.

“Kill it,” came a colder voice and Castiel tried to flip himself and bite through the net that bound him but he could not break through; instead he turned frightened and saddened eyes on the man he had pulled free last night.

“No!” he cried out, rushing to stop another man from striking him through with a knife. “Leave him alone! He _saved_ me!”

“Mermaids don’t _save_ people boy, they kill them.”

“Well this one saved me, I won’t-“

Castiel stopped his distress calls when he felt the water ripple and the ship shudder; his brothers were here.

 

\--

        “What was that?” Dean asked slowly, still standing over the merman protectively.

        “ _That_ boy is an attack,” the captain drawled coldly. “Read yourselves me-“ The captain cut short when the boat began to rock dangerously and then the sky above them darkened and the ocean swirled, threatening to capsize the ship.

         Dean fell when the boat rocked again, quickly scrabbling to free the merman, before he felt the ship start to turn. He cried out, trying to grab onto something stable but then strong arms were around him and he was sliding feet first into the ocean as the boat crashed above them, flipping over. He had a moment to take a breath and then he was falling, trying to return to the surface but the waves kept him down. There were dark shapes in the water, and he was pretty sure those were sharks coming to attack him.

       A webbed hand wrapped around his wrist and he was being pulled to the surface, even as his vision swam and he could not seem to stay conscious anymore. Darkness and then a sudden flash of brighter light and there was air in his lungs again. He took in huge gulps of it, only then realizing that the merman had him around the waist and was carefully swimming him over to a large chunk of wood that had come off of the ship, and began to shove him on it. Dean tried to help by pulling himself but he was still trying to remember how to breathe. He glanced back the creature, surprised to see him baring his teeth at another mercreature who was much bigger than both of them, but then they were left alone and the sea was calming and the sky began to break.

      Dean pressed his head against the wood, panting, and suddenly he felt exhausted. He was out in open water with mercreatures who clearly wanted him dead and one who did not. He looked back over his shoulder at the merman who stayed near him, his hands on Dean’s legs to help him stay afloat. He just wanted to sleep, and the last thing he remembered before the darkness came was the distressed sound the creature let out; it was like…he was crying.

    “Hey-…there he is….welcome back.”

       Dean blinked a few times, his vision slowly adjusting to realize that he was in a ship’s cabin on a bed. “Where am I?” he muttered, rubbing his eyes.

    “Saved,” came the assured voice. “Name’s Benny Lafitte, what’s yours Kid?”

     “Um…Dean…Winchester…” Dean looked around, rubbing his eyes some more. “….how’d I get here?”

     “Well, we came upon the wreckage of your ship and crew….found you on a floating little raft, a _merman_ with you…honestly he almost didn’t let us touch you, tried to bite my hand clean off.” Benny showed him the bite marks on his hand, tiny, razor puncture wounds in a perfect circle. “He seems to like you.”

      Dean frowned, and then it all came back to him; the merman had saved him from drowning, and then other mercreatures had come and capsized their ship, and then the merman had saved him _again_ from drowning. “Where is he?”

     “Beneath us, in a tank-“

    “A _tank_?” Dean jumped up, staggering out of the cabin, alarmed.

    “Dean!” Benny followed him, grabbing onto his elbow before Dean ended up overboard from being too wobbly. “Easy boy-“

   “You let him go you son of a bitch! What did Cas ever do to you?!”

      “Cas?”

      “…yeah…that’s his name,” Dean said, realizing he had just named the merman without ever learning his real name.

    “You can talk to him?”

   “No, I just named him okay?! You let Cas _go_!”

   “I can’t,” Benny replied quietly, shaking his head. “Got a scientist on board who’s been trying to get his hands on a mermaid to study…we’re taking the two of you down to the Caribbean.”

    “No-no, you have to let him go! Let me see him!” Dean glared but Benny finally conceded a nod and he was able to follow Benny down to where Cas was in a tall glass tank, latched and locked at the top. “Cas!” The merman perked up upon his entry to the room, his colors brightening and his fins puffing out, pressing his hands to the side.

   “Fascinating,” came a quiet voice from the corner. “I believe he either finds you to be an attractive food source, or he believes you are a potential mate.”

     Dean blinked, turning to look at the man with dark curls and glasses perched on his nose. “Who’re you?”

    “Ezra Fitz… _Doctor_ Ezra Fitz. You’re the man we pulled from the wreckage? The one he was protecting?”

    “…yeah…what do you mean he thinks I’m his mate? I’m a guy…and I’m not even a mercreature.” Dean walked up to the tank, placing his hand over Cas’ trying to make the merman feel more comfortable.

    “I’m not sure, it’s something I’ll have to work out,” Ezra replied with a smile.

    Dean frowned, making a silent decision to free Cas somehow.

     Castiel.

    The name had a ring to it.

\--      

      _Mermaids don’t_ save _people boy, they kill them, so we have to hunt them down and kill them before they get to us first._ Dean never really understood this thought process; why would anyone want to kill a creature as beautiful as a mercreature? They were wondrous and beautiful to look upon, with their bright scales, detailed fins, and powerful bodies. Dean found Cas to be fascinating, the way he acted, and moved, but he did not think that he deserved to be _studied_. They had arrived in the Caribbean where Ezra had a lab for the creatures and experiments he completed and worked on, however they had never caught a live mermaid before, so there was no tank made for the mermaids specifically.

     Dean remembered how they had taken Cas from the holding tank in the ship, and placed him in a much smaller one, which only allowed him to float and breathe the water, before being taken to the underground labs. The tanks inside were not much bigger; Cas had been placed in a tank that was more or less a metal cylinder, which accommodated him lengthwise but not width. Castiel was stuck laying on the bottom of the tank, flicking his tail now and again, maneuvering carefully to flip and turn himself when he grew too uncomfortable. The top opened to allow for the scientists to feed him, and Castiel grew so agitated that most of the assistants grew too afraid to feed him properly; they would pop the lid, toss in some fish, and leave before they lost a hand.

   The tank was made of all metal with one small, round window, and soon had dents in the side from where Cas had thrown himself out of boredom. Dean tried to talk to him, to tell him to not do such destructive behavior, but he never listened. There were nights when the men who worked in the labs complained about Cas’ screeches and cries, and in the morning they would find blood in the water from where Cas had raked himself against the sides, clawing at the metal interior from frustration. Dean hated seeing Cas this way; he was meant for the ocean, not for a tank that was more or less a bathtub.

     Ezra was having a “proper” tank built for Cas, one that was large and would _look like_ his natural environment. Dean found this to be completely stupid because his natural environment was the _ocean_ , the open waters, not a glass tank. Ezra commented that Cas’ behavior had grown more erratic the longer he stayed in the metal holding cell (that was what Dean viewed it as at least, a prison cell), and he only perked up when Dean would peer in through the window at him from time to time.

    “His coloration is duller today,” Ezra noted as he stood with his assistants who followed his orders as if he were a god, which Dean supposed in this place, he was. “Much duller actually, I hope he isn’t falling ill-“

     “Sick? You think Cas is sick- _of course_ he’s sick!” Dean snapped, walking up to lightly knock on the window, trying to see Cas but it was so dark inside the tank that he was only aware of Cas’ presence when he saw a webbed hand come to the glass. “Hey buddy,” he said, placing his hand over Cas’, giving him a small smile.

     “He likes you,” Ezra commented quietly.

    “ _Yeah_ , you think?” Dean had noticed that Cas preferred him to anyone else; his colors would brighten, and his fins would puff out more, as if he were showing off what a pretty merman he was for Dean. Ezra had told him that Cas viewed Dean as a mate, which was still extremely unnerving; even if Cas couldn’t drown him anymore, he was not sure how he felt about a mercreature wanting to _mate_ with him. Whatever that meant.

    “He’ll be moved tomorrow, don’t worry Dean, he’ll be much happier in his new home-“

     Dean cast a glare back at Ezra in annoyance. “He’d be _happiest_ in the ocean with his family-“

   “He can’t return to the ocean, it is too dangerous. We have been hand feeding him, he will soon lose the ability to take care of himself. He will need round the clock care, much like any other pet-“

   “He isn’t a pet!” Dean roared, slamming the side of the tank in his anger, but then feeling guilty when he heard Cas bang around from being startled. “Shit-I’m sorry Cas! See what you made me do? I scared him!”

    “You are a pirate Dean, this is what pirates _do_ , they tank things, and they plunder, and they hunt the creatures in the ocean. We are saving Cas from a worse fate than being put in a tank. He will love his new home, there will be nooks and crannies for him to live in, he will have other fish that are native to these waters in with him, places to hide, sleep, play. He’ll be happy.” Ezra tried to reassure him but no matter what Ezra said, Dean was never convinced Cas would be happy. “And he’ll be able to see you face to face, that will make him much happier.”

    “Yeah whatever,” Dean muttered, wanting to just hop in with Cas and wrap him up in his arms, tell him it would be okay, that he wouldn’t let people hurt him anymore. He wanted to stay in the labs with Cas but he wasn’t allowed, and he had no choice but to leave at night. He wasn’t expecting what he found in the morning.

 --

    The sound that Cas was making was not a vocalization that anyone had heard before but Dean was pretty fucking sure it was obvious that the merman was in pain. “What are you doing to him?!”

   “Just trying to take some-blood-hold _still_ -“ Ezra insisted, trying to keep Cas still as they held him close to the surface, but the merman slapped his tail around in agitation.

    “You’re hurting him!” Dean angrily shoved some guys from the stairs that led to the top of Cas’ holding tank, ready to shove Ezra in and let Cas eat him. “Stop it!” He dropped his eyes down to Cas’ face, which was just under the water, but he would bring it up and screech and squeal the more the scientists tried to hold him still.

   “If he would _hold still_ ,” Ezra snapped. “He would not _be_ in pain, this doesn’t hurt-“

   “If you were trying to put that huge ass needle in me, I’d be pretty fucking irritated too!” Dean snapped. “Here, let me do it. Just tell me where to put it-“

  “I can’t let you-“

   “You’re not going to get any blood from him if you keep holding him like that!” Dean stripped his shirt off, kicking his shoes off next, followed by his pants, stripping down to his underwear, before shooing the men off of him. “Let him go.”

      Ezra nodded and the men released Cas, who was quick to dive to the bottom of the tank to get away. “And you think you can get blood from him?”

    “He likes me, remember?” Dean tested the water, shivering. “Jesus why is it so cold? You’re gonna kill him!”

    “He’ll be fine, mercreatures can adapt to water temperature changes, it wasn’t supposed to be this cold, it is usually set in the 80s, but he’ll be fine Dean, he’s getting transferred today once we can get this from him-“

    Dean snatched a new syringe from Ezra’s hands, careful not to stab himself, slowly easing himself into the water, patting the surface a few times. If he dove down into that dark bottom, he wasn’t sure he could see Cas well enough to do the job. “Cas-Cas come here-“ Dean cut off when a loud whistle was sounded and slowly Cas came to the top, staying far enough away from the surface that he could not be grabbed. “What the hell was that?”

  “It’s so he’ll come eat-“ Ezra began.

  “You _tricked_ him? God what is _wrong_ with you people? Give me a fish! He thinks he’s getting fed you asshats.” Dean took the fish he was offered, holding it in his hand. “Here Cas.”

   The merman slowly approached Dean, finally popping up, one arm snaking around Dean’s waist, and the other taking the fish he offered, biting and then offering it back to him. Cas made some clicking sounds, which Dean was sure meant he was happy because his gills puffed out again.

  “Fascinating,” Ezra muttered, turning to take notes again.

   “Ugh…that’s..that’s okay Cas, you can eat the whole thing…” Dean tried not to feel sick at the idea of eating, cold...raw…fish but luckily Cas finished it off, his arms coming to hold Dean close again. That was when he remembered that Cas saw him as a mate, or supposedly he saw Dean as a potential mate. Did Cas realize he had male parts, and not female parts? Maybe it didn’t matter…. “Hey Buddy,” he said with a smile, reaching up to scratch Cas beneath the chin. Cas chirped at him, ducking under the water to get a breath before coming back up, nuzzling Dean’s face with his.

  “He likes you very much…now Dean I need him to raise his tail up.”

  “Okay, okay.” Dean gestured at Cas to turn himself over and at first the merman stared at him in confusion but then he slowly flipped himself, revealing his tail, raining water back down into the tank. “Good boy,” Dean praised before popping back up. “Okay, where am I doing this?”

    Ezra gently lifted Cas’ tail up, pointing out to Dean where the easiest vein was, before Dean carefully put the needle under Cas’ skin until a dark blood began to fill the tube easily. They collected six tubes of blood before finally letting Cas go, who was quick to splash and go back down to the bottom, leaving Dean to climb back out of the water, taking the towel offered. The cold was beginning to bother him,  and he wrapped the towel around his shivering body tighter. The lid to the tank was shut and then Ezra was off to see why the heating system had quick working. Dean made his way down the stairs carefully, pausing by the window before walking to where he could see the large tank; and it was _huge_.

   Even Dean had to admit it was nice, it was longer and taller than the other for sure, and made of acrylic so Cas couldn’t break the glass and put a crack in the tank. There was a huge mound of coral and rocks in the middle, stretching close to the top, full of nooks and crannies as Ezra had promised. The bottom was made of white sand, where stones and other objects shone and shimmered; Cas would like those. But no matter how nice the tank appeared, that did not make it _right_.  He stood off to the side while they wrestled with Cas to get him out of the holding tank, and then to carry him to the new one. Cas cried and screamed, the screeching making everyone flinch.

Tears.

He had tears falling down his face.

    Dean wasn’t sure if they were for Cas or for something else. He just hoped that he could get Cas out of here soon, before he really did lose all ability to care for himself. Cas deserved to be in the ocean with his family, not trapped in a tank like a fish. _He is not a pet_ , Dean reminded himself before walking up to the tank, placing a tentative hand against the warm wall, waiting for Cas to come down. Dean saw some thrashing and bubbles and then finally Cas was swimming and looking around, clearly stunned and taken aback by the new space. Dean’s heart broke when Cas swam up to him so fast that he rammed himself into the tank wall, and then he was scrabbling at it, as if he couldn’t quite understand why there was a thick piece of glass between himself and Dean.

   “Hey, hey it’s okay. Cas it’s _okay_ , stop, stop-“ Dean patted the glass, trying to make Cas relax before he hurt himself somehow. “Shhh it’s okay, it’s okay. I’m right here.”

     The merman stopped, finally realizing he was in another cage, yet again, stuck in a place that looked like home but could never be home. He floated there for a moment, before black flipping off to go explore his new space, poking around in the coral and rock shelves. Dean tried to smile, watching Cas interact with his new environment, and even if the coral was all real, and so were his new fish friends, it was still painfully artificial for Dean.

   “Don’t worry Dean,” came Ezra’s voice. “He’ll be happy here.”

   “You better be right,” Dean said quietly, before casting a dark look at Ezra over his shoulder. “Or I’ll throw you in there with him one day.”

 

   “He’s highly intelligent, perhaps on par with orcas and dolphins,” Ezra was saying to his lackeys when Dean walked down into the lab, eyes struggling to adjust from the bright sun outside, to the dimness underground.

   “Yeah or _people_ ,” Dean snapped, cutting the air like a whip. “He’s _smart_ because he’s like us.”

    “Now Dean, I know you wish to believe that Castiel is like a human but he isn’t-“ Ezra tried to begin but Dean was quick to cut him off.

     “He feels pain like we do! He cries and he screams and he feels joy too! That makes him human-“

     “Dogs can feel the same things that we do but that doesn’t make them _human_ ,” Ezra replied quickly, holding up a hand. “Would you like to feed him?”

      Dean glared but nodded, following Ezra up the stairs to the top of Cas’ tank, taking a bucket of ice and fish with them. Dean sat on the catwalk that led to the water, taking his shoes and socks off so he could place his feet in the warm water. He leaned down to pat the surface of the water, until Cas popped up, making him jerk from surprise. “Hey Buddy.”

    Castiel clicked and rubbed his face along Dean’s leg, reaching out a hand for the fish. Ezra tsked, shaking his head. “Tell him he has to wait, we are teaching him to be polite, he _doesn’t_ grab.”

     Dean rolled his eyes but he took a fish and held it out of Cas’ reach, which made him feel like a jerk but he did not want Ezra to be angry with him either. “Can I give it to him now?” he asked, watching Cas wait, slightly irritated.

   “Yes, yes he can have the fish now.”

     Dean gave Cas a wink, handing him the fish, watching as those sharp teeth tore into the fish like butter, eating the whole body, bones and all, before holding out his hand again, the other resting on Dean’s ankle. “Good boy,” he praised, grabbing another fish and handing it over, feeding Cas six fish before he readied himself to get up and leave. “Good boy Cas.”

    Dean smiled down at the mercreature, turning to hand the empty bucket to Ezra. “I’ll be down in a bit.”

   “Okay Dean, be careful.”

     Dean rolled his eyes again once Ezra was not looking at him, smiling at Cas, petting his hair affectionately. “You’re a good boy Cas….but I gotta go, okay? I’ll see you later-“ He went to pull his legs out of the tank but then he felt Castiel yank him, and he couldn’t grab onto the edge in time before he was being yanked underwater.  He took a breath and then he could only allow Cas to pull him down to the bottom of the tank. He turned desperate eyes on Cas, hoping he could convey to the merman that he needed _air_ before he ran out, but the merman was smiling at him.

Well, that was unsettling.

 --

      Castiel smiled at Dean, swimming around him in happy circles. Now that he and Dean were here together they could _be_ together, he would just have to find a place to build a nest and mate with Dean first. He spun around, his eyes searching for a proper cave that would be in the rocks, before clicking excitedly, turning back around to collect Dean and get to business. However, the human was swimming as quickly as he could away and Castiel had no choice but to follow, reaching up to grab onto his ankle, just as Dean broke the surface.

    “Cas!” he heard the man gasp, before he had him back under the water. Castiel liked his name, which was the kindest thing a human had ever done for him. He screeched when Dean kicked him hard, breaking away successfully and Castiel popped up after him, watching in hurt as Dean made his way up to the catwalk, scrambling as fast as he could away from him.

    Dean stared at him as if he was afraid and Castiel chirped up at Dean sadly. Did Dean not like his new home? Did Dean not want to live here with him? Dean shook his head, breathing hard, and staying far enough way that Castiel could not grab him again, shaking visibly. “Bad boy!” Dean snapped, making Cas flinch in fear. “Bad, _bad_ merman. You can’t-you can’t pull people in like that Cas, I’ll die-you know better.”

     Castiel gave Dean another frightened look before quickly diving back under the water to swim off and hide. He found a shelf in the side, eagerly slithering between slabs of rock to rest, only allowing the end of his tail to hang off the edge. Dean was angry with him, which was almost as bad as being taken from his home and put in _here_. His brothers had been right after all; humans were evil creatures, and he had been wrong to trust them. 

\--

    “How is he?” Dean asked quietly, having spent two weeks away from the labs, spending his time with Benny and the new crew he had found himself a part of.

    Ezra glanced up, smiling slightly but there was a sadness to the gesture. “Not well…we can hardly get him to come up to eat, he’ll come when the drive becomes too strong to ignore, and he’ll take the fish and dash away. It’s as if he is afraid…he’s lots a lot of his color, he’s mostly this gray and white wash…it’s awful. We can’t get him to perk up and be healthy again, no matter what we try. I’ve put supplements in his water, we’ve put in some air pumps to give him more oxygen…we’ve tried everything.”

    Dean bit his lip, feeling guilty for having ignored Cas for two weeks. “Where is he?” Dean looked up at the tank, not seeing Cas swimming around.

    Ezra pointed up to the far top corner and Dean saw a flicker of a tail movement. “Right in there, he stays there mostly.”

    “Can I try and feed him?”

     “If you like. There is some fish at the top already.”

      Dean nodded, turning to go up the stairs, sitting cross-legged near the edge, gently patting the water. “Cas, come here Buddy…it’s time to eat.” Dean waited for what felt like forever, before finally he saw a shadow and Cas slowly popped his head up, keeping his distance. “Hey Buddy,” he said with a smile, grabbing a fish and holding it out. “Here. Eat something….Ezra says you haven’t been eating, you gotta eat, okay?”

      Castiel stared at the fish tentatively, not moving from his spot. The noise he made, small and pitiful, made Dean’s heart wrench. He tried to smile some more, hoping the friendly gesture would make Cas relax.

     “Come on Cas, take it. It’s okay….see? I’m not mad anymore.” Dean pretended to nibble on the fish himself, hoping that would make Cas want it more. “See? Good.”

    Castiel approached him slowly, taking the fish and darting out of Dean’s reach, nibbling on the fish in turn, eating slowly. “Good boy,” Dean praised. “Good boy.”

    Castiel chirped and slowly began to perk up as Dean stayed with him, even coming close enough that Dean could pet him. The merman practically purred when Dean scratched under his chin, and the fins along his face. Dean even removed some dead scales from Cas’ face, smiling when the merman made a happy sound.

   “That’s better, huh? Good boy Cas…you’re a good merman.”

    Castiel smiled, which was unnerving due to all of the sharp teeth he had and then he darted away and came back, repeating the gesture a few times. He frowned, tilting his head to the side, confused at Cas’ behavior. “What?” Dean asked, blinking a few times in confusion. “…oh you want me to come in there with you, don’t you? …Cas I can’t, okay? I can’t swim with you….I gotta go, okay? I’ll be back later though.” Dean pulled away before Cas could repeat two weeks ago and try to drown him again, slowly getting to his feet. “See you later Buddy.” He had no choice but to ignore Cas’ distress calls, even though it was painful to hear.

\--

      He could see himself in the glass; his reflection had never really fascinated him as it had his brothers and sisters. They were always caught up in trying to see themselves, but now that Castiel had nothing to look at, he found that he stared at himself day in and day out. He would never return to the ocean. He would never see his family again. He raised his eyes to the surface and began to contemplate on simply drowning on air. Castiel slowly began to float towards the surface, and when he closed his eyes he remembered the color of Anna’s fins; that vibrant crimson tinged with cream. Lucifer with his deep blacks and purples, Michael with the way he shimmered white and gold. Balthazar and his arrange of greens and grays, and then Gabriel with the way he shimmered gold in some lights and in others he shined iridescent. The last thought on his mind was the sound of the ocean, and his heart thrumming with each wave. 


End file.
